Brussels, 11/12/2012 (Agence Europe) - The way is provisionally open for free trade between the EU and its Central American partners, pending ratification by national parliaments.
On Tuesday 11 December, in Strasbourg, the European Parliament approved by 557 votes to 100 and 21 abstentions the association agreement between the EU and Central America (Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and Salvador) concluded in 2010 and signed on 29 June this year. The association agreement includes political dialogue, enhanced cooperation and a trade agreement that provides liberalisation for the trade in goods, services and investment. Pursuant to the terms of the deal reached in May 2010, the free trade agreement provides for total liberalisation of the European and Central American manufactured goods markets, and duty free access for European automobiles on the Central American market for a period of ten years. It also provides better access to Central America for European services companies and ensures a better framework for investment in key sectors of the Central American region. In agriculture, the agreement provides for customs duties on bananas to be reduced to €75 a tonne, with the reduction taking place over a ten year period until 2020. Also, a stabilisation mechanism is foreseen to counter losses by European banana producers. The expected gain in terms of customs duty savings for European exporters is estimated at €87 million. European goods exports to Central America reached a value of €4.5 billion in 2010, while imports amounted to €7.6 billion. (EH/transl.jl)